When it came to the matters of the Simulated Universe, Sylvia found herself unable to get a word in edgewise.
She could only stand by and watch as Ruan Mei and Herta handled the discussion themselves. Herta expressed a measured curiosity when Ruan Mei brought up her desire to investigate the project regarding Permanence.
At this stage, Ruan Mei saw no reason to keep secrets, so she informed Herta of the deal she had struck with Sylvia.
Herta remained noncommittal. In any case, aside from the upcoming "Gold and Gears" update spearheaded by Screwllum, the projects following it hadn't been set in stone yet.
If Ruan Mei wanted to take the initiative on content related to Permanence, Herta had no objections.
They could research whichever Aeon they pleased; the project was never built to target any one specific Aeon, after all.
Following the discussion, Ruan Mei pulled Sylvia into another test run of the Simulated Universe's standard version.
This time, Ruan Mei wanted to gather more data on Permanence to conduct some preliminary analysis.
The test didn't take long. Once she had the data she was looking for, Ruan Mei headed off to her laboratory in the Seclusion Zone.
Coincidentally, the damaged train that the Xianzhou had shipped over finally arrived at the Space Station.
Sylvia, who had been planning to leave, thought it over and decided to stay a while longer to see how the repairs were coming along.
"Ngh—! Finally, we're at the Space Station! It's been so long since I've been on a ship other than the Astral Express, I'm actually feeling a little out of place," March 7th chirped as she stepped off the starskiff, stretching her arms wide and rambling away.
Stelle followed closely behind with a wide grin. For her, this whole experience was a first.
However, it wasn't long before a group of researchers—sent by Asta to handle the Astral Express repairs—stepped forward to intercept the duo.
Meanwhile, over on the platform behind them, other staff members were already busy coordinating with the Xianzhou representatives to finalize the handover of the battered train.
A quick inspection revealed that the damage was severe; it wasn't practical to leave the train on the main tracks.
Most of the subsequent restoration work would need to be carried out in a more suitable compartment.
By the time Sylvia got the news and tracked down March 7th and Stelle, the damaged train had already been loaded onto the Space Station's transport equipment and was being moved to the designated hangar.
"Ah, Sylvia! You're here too!"
March 7th was standing off to the side, looking a bit bored. Since she couldn't actually help with the technical repairs, watching everyone else bustle about made her feel a little restless.
Stelle, on the other hand... well, she had somehow managed to get her hands on a set of maintenance coveralls and was currently blending in with the Space Station staff.
Holding a toolbox, she was quietly tinkering with something or other. There was even a kind-hearted girl next to her giving her pointers, making it look like she was actually part of the crew.
"What is she doing?"
"...As you can see, she has developed a sudden and immense passion for mechanical engineering," March 7th sighed, rubbing her forehead.
Stelle had been perfectly fine when they arrived, but the moment she saw the maintenance crew geared up and ready to go, she decided to join the ranks on the spot. Because Asta had personally vouched for them, the researchers didn't mind Stelle's presence; in fact, they welcomed her.
It gave them a perfect excuse to slack off under the guise of "mentoring a Nameless," all without getting in trouble—and they'd probably get a bonus out of it, too.
Listening to March's explanation, Sylvia watched Stelle poke and prod at things like a curious toddler. A faint smile touched her lips.
"Speaking of which, have things been settled between you and Stelle?"
"Uh... ahaha... lovely weather today, isn't it?"
"...We're on Herta Space Station. What 'weather' are you talking about?"
Sylvia couldn't help but roll her eyes at March's terrible attempt to change the subject. The girl's face instantly flushed a deep crimson.
"We made up! Of course we made up! But... I haven't told Stelle the real reason yet."
"The real one? Oh, well, you probably don't need to tell her that anyway..."
Sylvia quickly realized what March meant by the "real reason."
She felt that sort of thing wasn't really suitable for sharing with others. Besides, knowing Stelle, the situation probably wasn't nearly as complicated as March was making it out to be in her head.
"If anything, if you actually told her, I can only envision a total social suicide scenario for you."
"Ugh... stop, stop! If you keep talking, I'm actually gonna cry."
March covered her face and nodded. She could perfectly imagine that scene herself. Sylvia couldn't resist reaching out and giving March's head a little pat.
"Sigh. It looks like the 'education' of these kids needs to be put on the schedule. We can't delay it anymore. Since we're at the Space Station, we have everything we need."
"Huh? You're actually serious about that education thing??"
March peeked through her fingers, her eyes wide as she stared at Sylvia. She hadn't seen Sylvia bring it up with Stelle over the past few days, so she figured it had just been a joke.
You're actually going through with it?
"Well, it's not like you're the one being called 'wife' every day, is it?"
Sylvia shot her a look. What's with that expression? You aren't the one dealing with a constant 'waifu' label.
"Ehehe~"
March gave a silly grin, trying to act cute to dodge the tension.
"Alright, let's go! Since you're just standing around with nothing to do, come with me and help draft a 'Special Astral Express Edition' textbook."
Sylvia glanced at Stelle, who was still working away with gusto, then grabbed March by the arm to lead her out.
"Wait, wait! Me too? No way... it's not really appropriate for me to be there, is it?"
March started acting all coy and bashful, whatever she was thinking making her so fidgety that Sylvia felt a sudden urge to give her a good flick on the forehead.
And so, Sylvia did exactly that.
Thwack!
"Ow!" March let out a yelp, clutching her forehead with watery eyes.
Sylvia glared at her sternly. "I've finally figured it out. The one who needs their brain scrubbed and their education reinforced isn't Stelle—it's you and your head full of nonsense."
"I don't! I didn't! Don't just make stuff up!"
March tried to protest, but she couldn't even manage a convincing act.
Just thinking about those things made her face turn beet-root red. She stared at Sylvia with shimmering eyes, looking so flustered that an outsider might think Sylvia had done something terrible to her.
"And you still say you don't? You're practically shouting your guilt from the rooftops, you know."
Sylvia pulled out her phone and—click—snapped a photo of March's face.
"That expression... I'm seriously starting to wonder what kind of stuff you're looking at on a daily basis, March."
"..."
To be fair, even March was silenced by her own expression. Truth be told, it was a look that was very easy to misunderstand. If it weren't her own face, she'd probably say the person looked like they were in heat.
Unfortunately, it was her face.
Thoroughly defeated by her own reaction, March went into a "self-isolation" mode. She squatted in the corner, burying her face in her hands and refusing to look up.
The tips of her ears were burning red, and she would occasionally steal a glance at Sylvia from the corner of her eye before quickly shrinking back. She clearly felt she had no dignity left.
Sylvia let out a little chuckle. She reached down and simply hoisted March up over her shoulder.
"I think you're lacking a bit of 'education' yourself. You're coming with me~"
--+--
T/N: I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.